Reviews with content warning for Sexual violence - Sadie

Wow. This was, really, really hard to read. I truly believe that it was beautifully written - and the mix between Sadie's POV and the podcast transcripts was brilliant. It deserves all of the hype it gets because it was absolutely gut-wrenching for me. The only reason this is getting just a little less than four stars is merely my overall personal enjoyment while reading - it took me forever to finish and I was never truly motivated to finish it until the last quarter of the book. That could have been my reading mood, however, because I would still 100% recommend this book! Especially for those who love true-crime podcasts. (I might re-visit and update my star-rating later).

Another reason why I am semi-disappointed is the ending. We do not have Sadie's death entirely confirmed and I would rather know than not. HOWEVER, it does work well with the podcast layout as with most true-crime podcasts there are no true 'ends' after investigations. So I am at a cross-roads between completely hating the ending, and applauding it for its correlation to the realm of true-crime podcasts.

Just be cautious and review the content warnings before reading.

Content Warnings

hakeema17h's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? N/A
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

Content Warnings

lisa_m's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional inspiring sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated

3.0

⚠️❗Trigger Warning: child abuse, rape, molestation, pedophilia, death, depression, drug abuse and murder❗⚠️

This book was quite a ride and also quite out of my comfortzone. That is also the reason why you shouldn't let my review of only 3⭐ make you not want to read the book.

It is incredibly written and I can absolutely appreciate it for what it is. The representation of stuttering (which I have never ever read in a book before!) was something you have to get used to but its definitely worth it.

What made it hard for me to get through was mainly the themes of the book. I have put the Trigger Warnings on top and as you can see there's a lot of them. All of those topics are definitely issues that have to be adressed. I read the book knowing it was going to be hard to get through but I did it and I'm glad I did. The book never made me feel like it was exploiting Sadies experiences and memories. She had flashbacks and she described what she experienced but it was never in extreme detail.
I'm not a fan of horror/gore/thrillers and the book isn't that at all. It's a YA-contemporary mystery with very heavy topics. If you feel like you are able to read it, I would definitely recommend it. It made me think a lot for sure.

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phdoyle's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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livpasquarelli's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

Content Warnings

the_books_music_life's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

I almost cried at the end of this book. This book hits so hard and hits with so many different emotions I can't even really describe the feelings I had when I was reading this. I would 100% recommend the audiobook, it's full cast with sound effects and it's like listening to a true crime podcast.

The book follows the main mystery of what happened to Mattie Southern and her sister Sadie, who is on her own search for answers and justice, and goes missing along the way. The book is in dual perspective and follows that of Sadie and West McCray a radio personality who does a podcast investigating Mattie’s murder and Sadie’s disappearance.

I got three paragraphs in and I already love it. The format is something I’ve never seen done before, it’s set in a podcast series format and it bounces between the podcast narrator and Sadie. I can get lost in the story and forget it’s not a real life true crime case I’m listening to but a fictional story

I think this book is something everyone should read but I recognize not everyone can because of the subject matter. While nothing is explained in gory details or shown physically happening the book deals with the murder of a child, child molestation, drug abuse, child abuse and parental abandonment. So be sure to read the content warnings before going into this book.

Sadie has a stutter that is prevalent in her narration and it adds to the characterization of Sadie and helps the reader relate to her. All the characters are fleshed out and feel like real people, down to the choices they make.

The way we, as readers or listeners, are brought into the flashbacks Sadie experiences of her trauma so well done, you almost think it’s actually happening instead of it being a flashback. Which is true if you have ever experienced a flashback. The more I read I can’t help but be angry at Mattie and how hurtful and mean and how she never seemed to appreciate all that Sadie had done for her.

The ending had me so worried, I was so scared that what I thought was going to happen would but thank god it went a different way. I feel like the ending will be hit or miss; some will love it, some will hate it. I felt it was a good, realistic and felt right for the story.

Content Warnings

michaelapr's review against another edition

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dark emotional tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

First off there are a few triggers that needs to be acknowledged: Pedophilia, Child Abuse, Sexual Abuse, Manipulation - All are mentions not graphic scenes, thank God, but while this book is fantastic it could be triggering and gets dark fairly quickly.

Now on to this book! I listened to the audiobook, something I highly recommend because the production of this is fantastic. We go back and forth between podcast episodes where a journalist is investigating the disappearance of title character Sadie after her sister's brutal murder and Sadie's point of view of her journey for revenge, which the journalist is investigating. The audiobook is just like listening to a podcast and the framework is artfully done.
The story itself is gut wrenching and fast-paced. It was hard to put this book down, I was so invested in the outcome and these characters. Courtney Summers writes a captivating, heartbreaking, intense story that never sensationalizes the dark content nor trivializes Sadie's struggles.

Now ahead are spoilers! It should be marked but you have been warned.

The ending of this made me so MAD and upset! I was expecting an epilogue, I really was, with Sadie's point of view. I thought surely she didn't die, that she managed to survive and was going to make a life for herself after all she's been through - I really wanted that for her. But no, we never find out! And it's implied that Sadie most likely died. Which was maddening after rooting for her, for hoping the podcast would help her!! This book still gets a 5 star rating because it was a great book but oh that was a direct hit to my heart!

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